Crime: April 2008 Archives

The following is an excerpt from Sun editor/publisher Jim Lynch's "Commentary" column (Fri. 4.25), where he defends the Naperville police making extra bucks in OT, deeming it in the interest of public safety.The column came in response to many attacks on police OT both on that thread and the Napergate thread. Do Lynch's comments have any merit or is he just blowing smoke? Read the following and let us know.

"In the aftermath of last Sunday's story on police overtime while reading the comments of Sun bloggers who either don't like cops or see a conspiracy by the presence of more than one of Naperville's Finest:
As to the overtime issue: I'm glad Naperville cops are sitting in court for DUI cases. In a city so bursting with kids that District 204 needs a new high school, we should be glad there's zero tolerance for drunken driving. It saves lives.

Wednesday's Sun includes a story by one of our Sun-Times News Group sister publications about how police in the nearby town of Sugar Grove plan to start writing tickets instead of making arrests for first-time offenders caught with small amounts of marijuana. Should Naperville and other towns follow suit?

In Sunday's Sun (4.20) we feature an informative piece about how the Naperville Police Department plans to cope with a City Council directive to cut overtime spending by 5 percent, to $3 million this year. The comprehensive investigation also looks at the amount of money officers rack up in OT.Though the dollar numbers look big, the annual percentage is actually lower than one of our neighboring municipalities that is comparable in size. We also look at the cops and how they can make money working various summer festivals etc. and where those dollars in police overtime actually come from. The answers may surprise you. A natural reaction might be to say, well, why not just hire more cops instead of paying stiff overtime? That question is answered, too. We're curious what you think - since it's your tax dollars at work - and whether you think the NPD can be successful in following the Council's mandate to cut overtime spending and maintain the quality of public safety Napervillians are accustomed to. Let us know right here.

Gunfire rang out in south Naperville just past midnight Tuesday morning (4.1) and a mortally-wounded man's body was found on the median of 87th St. Neighbors were stunned by the sudden explosion of violence in a town which is as sleepy as it is safe. But in the ever-changing world we live in, are we being lulled into complacency?
Granted, this is the first homicide involving a firearm to strike Naperville in three years and the city has a very low crime rate, but this incident serves as a grim reminder that violence can flare at the most unpredictable of moments as well as places. Just three months into 2008 and Naperville has recorded its first homicide - a statistic which neighboring Aurora has yet to chalk up. Are you bothered by this heinous crime happening in our city or is it just an isolated incident we will all soon forget? We'd like to know.